February 25, 2012

A Review Of A Survivor's Struggle To Live

Cat And The Dreamer - Annalisa Crawford
Vagabondage Press
Genre - Contemporary/ New Adult/ Realistic/ Women Fiction
Novelette - 22000 words, Price $ 2.99
Available at Amazon Kindle Store
Barnes and Noble Nookbooks
Google Books/eBooks
Omnilit



A surivor
















Today, I am reviewing 'Cat and The Dreamer', a novelette (though Wiki says its word count makes it a novella), a give away on a guest blog post. Technicalities aside, a contemporary + realistic women fiction as this blurb goes:


As a teenager, Julia survived a suicide pact, while her best friend, Rachel, died. Julia’s only escape from her guilt, and her mother’s over-protection, is her imagination. When Adam arrives in the office, Julia’s world takes a startling turn as she realises reality can be much more fun than fantasy.
Finally she has someone who can help her make the most of her life.
But can she allow herself to be truly happy?


The book is basically a first person narration by, the then 15 and now 29 year old survivor Julia, on life as it is now. 
It's a poignant, raw and very hard hitting portrayal of a woman trapped in a teenager's mind, who struggles her way through the art of living.
 The ghosts of the past, over protective parents and bullying co workers make it thrice as difficult to taste freedom of a normal life.
Adding to this deadly potion are her own fears and her penchant of seeking refuge in the dream world, she often inhabits. They resurface when her knight in shining armour Adam, literally rides his way through her office and personal life.
Will his protection and love be enough for Julia to start anew? Read it to find out...


I loved the wordplay, realistic conversations and the process of Julia's slow awakening to reality and freedom.
The book deals with the effects of bullying on young minds, covertly which works for it.
The supporting cast of Adam was most likeable, Cat made a good antagonist and the parents could move you to pity or anger depending on your perception...in my case they invoked both pity and a little resentment.


My only grouse is the length of the work which leaves you wanting to know more of Julia and  specially Adam.
An excellent choice for reading on a weekend that gets a 4.5 out of 5 rating from me...and of course, having a hardy heart goes without saying.




7 comments:

Annalisa Crawford said...

Thank you for such a lovely review. I'm really glad you enjoyed it.

Unknown said...

I love the comic strip. The one thing that can be annoying about short stop rues is that some leave unfinished business and you're left wondering.

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

I'm glad to see our blog-author friends are writing about bullying and suicide. It's such a relevant topic that can't be addressed enough. This was a nice review, Rek.
xoRobyn

Golden Eagle said...

Sounds like an interesting story!

Great review--and the comic was a unique way of introducing it.

Roland D. Yeomans said...

I hope you enjoy your blog break this month. I followed over from Alex's blog. I did my CASSAFIRE POST today. It has the merit of laughter I hope, Roland

Tess Julia said...

That sounds really good- I'll have to check it out.

Pat Tillett said...

thanks for the review! I like the subject and it sounds good! I also loved your cartoon!

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Glad you made it this far...would love to hear your take on the words scribbled. A comment every now and then keeps the blues away. :D

Since, crazy Mr. Blogspot won't let me reply to the comments here (is upset with the water ladies ever since they refused to verify visitors)...will do the next best thing, drop in to your blog to say my Vanakkam/Namaste/Salaam/Hello.

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